Continuing sophistication for sports surfaces

Edited by the Buildingtalk editorial team Jun 6, 2008

Sports Coatings water based polyurethane technology for outdoor coatings.

Duncan Wilson, Technical Sales Manager, Sports Coatings .

Spray applied coatings for porous tarmac tennis courts have been in use for over 20 years.

The original products were simple in their make up and did little more than colour the surface.

Products for sports surfaces today are much more sophisticated and take the needs of the player and applicator into account - much higher levels of pigmentation provide better coverage and aesthetics and in-film biocides inhibit the growth of surface algae, extending the life of the surface.

A major change was the introduction of texturing agents to improve slip resistance.

Most painted surfaces are fine when dry but slip resistance drops dramatically when wet.

Tennis surfaces must now comply with the test in the SAPCA code of practice - the TRRL (Transport and Road Research Laboratory) pendulum test.

The surface must have a minimum reading of 100 when dry and 60 when wet.

To achieve this, fine particles of various aggregates are added to give a 'sandpaper' feel to the surface giving good grip underfoot and uniform pace to the ball.

Most spray applied coatings are formulated on water based acrylics, in 2003 Sports Coatings introduced water based polyurethane technology to outdoor coatings.

Sports-Cote Premium is a blend of water based acrylic and water based polyurethane used on over 1500 tennis courts per year.

Sports-cote Excel is a 100% water based polyurethane coating and has twice the abrasion resistance of acrylic products, it is used for application to netball courts, multi-use games areas and tennis courts that are subjected to higher than normal wear.

The coatings are sprayed on to sports surfaces with a high pressure airless spray machine.

The application of the coatings is generally carried out in two coats, each being applied in different directions to reduce the appearance of spray lines.

After completing the coating, the playing lines are applied.